Measurement of end-tidal carbon dioxide in spontaneously breathing children after cardiac surgery.

Background: Respiratory monitoring is important after surgery to prevent pulmonary complications. End-tidal carbon dioxide (Petco(2)) measurement by capnometry is an indirect and noninvasive measurement of Pco(2) in blood and is accepted and recognized in critical care.

Objectives: To determine the correlation and level of agreement between Petco(2) and Paco(2) in spontaneously breathing children after cardiac surgery and to determine whether Petco(2) measured by using tidal volume (Vt-Petco(2)) or vital capacity (VC-Petco(2)) shows more or less significant correlation with Paco(2).

[Immediate post-operative care following cardiac surgery].

Objective: To present a care routine for children submitted to heart surgery.

Source Of Data: Literature review of Medscape, MD Consult and PubMed. Analysis of the suggested conducts adopted by various services from different countries and comparison with the care routine at the Pequeno Príncipe Children's Hospital (Curitiba, state of Paraná), where approximately 8,000 heart surgeries were performed in children from 1977 to April 2003.